History society’s joy as World War One research project gets £10,000 Heritage Lottery Fund boost

The Bacup Natural History Society was awarded a grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund for its Nursing Heroes the Fern Hill Story project, which tells the story of the Fern Hill Auxiliary, Military Hospital, in Stacksteads.

by Beth Abbit

09:11, 31 Jul 2014

A history group has been handed a £10,000 cash boost for a World War One research project.

The Bacup Natural History Society was awarded a grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund for its Nursing Heroes the Fern Hill Story project, which tells the story of the Fern Hill Auxiliary, Military Hospital, in Stacksteads.

The society will convert an empty space at the back of the museum, on Yorkshire Street, into a small diorama representing a corner of a ward that was housed in the drawing room of Fern Hill House.

Member Wendy Watters (pictured) said the first eight patients arrived at the hospital on November 29, 1914, and throughout the war more than 700 men were treated between the joint Fern Hill and Acre Mill hospitals.

She said: “We will tell the story of the house, how it became a auxiliary military hospital and the soldiers and nurses that worked and were treated there using story boards, photographs and the soldiers’ own stories.”

“We are absolutely thrilled to have received the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund which will enable us to bring to life the Soldiers and Nursing Heroes of Fern Hill Auxiliary Military Hospital, a very important but little known part of our local Great War history.”

Schools and community groups will be invited to visit the Nat to learn about and research the soldiers and nurses at Fern Hill.

It is hoped the project will encourage others to find out about their Great War ancestors.

Sara Hilton, head of the Heritage Lottery Fund North West, said it has invested more than £57m in WW1 projects.

She added: “The impact of the First World War was far reaching, touching and shaping every corner of the UK and beyond.

“With our new small grants programme, we are enabling even more communities like those involved in Nursing Heroes the Fern Hill Story to explore the continuing legacy of this conflict and help local young people in particular to broaden their understanding of how it has shaped our modern world.”

The Nat is open every Thursday night from 7.30pm, and the third Saturday of the month.

Visitors are welcome to use the new research and reference area where they can get help with their family, military or local history research, access online records or view old newspapers.